Here’s How Apple (AAPL) Impacted Baron Opportunity Fund’s Performance

AAPL +1.97% ^SPX +0.98%

Baron Funds, an investment management company, released its “Baron Opportunity Fund” third-quarter 2025 investor letter. A copy of the letter can be downloaded here. The fund posted positive results in the third quarter, returning 5.44% (Institutional Shares), but lagged behind the Russell 3000 Growth Index’s (the Benchmark) 10.41% gain and the S&P 500 Index’s 8.12% return. The magnificent seven were the significant contributors to the performance of the benchmark in the second consecutive quarter. The relative underperformance was due to specific stocks, caused by a mix of disappointing results from certain holdings in the portfolio and the strong performance of mega-cap stocks that the fund did not have. Moreover, the letter included a detailed update on AI. In addition, you can check the fund’s top 5 holdings to determine its best picks for 2025.

In its third-quarter 2025 investor letter, Baron Opportunity Fund highlighted stocks such as Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL). Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) is an American multinational company that designs, manufactures, and markets smartphones, personal computers, tablets, wearables, and accessories. The one-month return of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) was 3.46%, and its shares gained 17.52% of their value over the last 52 weeks. On November 19, 2025, Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) stock closed at $268.56 per share, with a market capitalization of $3.986 trillion.

Baron Opportunity Fund stated the following regarding Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) in its third quarter 2025 investor letter:

"The Fund’s non-ownership of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL), which remained a Magnificent Seven laggard on a year-to-date basis but rebounded sharply during the quarter, accounted for 43% of our IT sector underperformance.

Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) is in 8th position on our list of 30 Most Popular Stocks Among Hedge Funds. As per our database, 156 hedge fund portfolios held Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) at the end of the second quarter, which was 159 in the previous quarter. Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) reported revenue of $102.5 billion in the September quarter, reflecting an 8% year-over-year increase. While we acknowledge the potential of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) as an investment, we believe certain AI stocks offer greater upside potential and carry less downside risk. If you're looking for an extremely undervalued AI stock that also stands to benefit significantly from Trump-era tariffs and the onshoring trend, see our free report on the best short-term AI stock.

In another article, we covered Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) and shared the list of stocks Jim Cramer discussed. In its Q3 2025 investor letter, RiverPark Large Growth Fund noted that Apple Inc. rose sharply after strong fiscal Q3 results and positive sentiment around its AI strategy. In addition, please check out our hedge fund investor letters Q3 2025 page for more investor letters from hedge funds and other leading investors.

READ NEXT: The Best and Worst Dow Stocks for the Next 12 Months and 10 Unstoppable Stocks That Could Double Your Money.

Disclosure: None. This article is originally published at Insider Monkey.